


Stings a Little

by WrC



Category: How to Train Your Dragon (Movies), Rise of the Guardians (2012)
Genre: Anal Sex, But i swear it's cute too, Come Swallowing, Explict Sexual Content, Friends With Benefits, HiJack Secret Santa, Homophobia, I'm probably forgetting tags but its late sorry, Kissing, M/M, Neck Kissing, Oral Sex, Pastry Chef!Jack, Tattoo Artist!Hiccup, a dash of feels, cat!Toothless
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-31
Updated: 2017-12-31
Packaged: 2019-02-24 08:32:51
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,504
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13209939
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WrC/pseuds/WrC
Summary: Do you know that frustrating feeling when you know you have seen someone before, but you can't quite remember where or when? That feeling, when it's on the tip of your tongue but the details continue to elude you? That's exactly what Hiccup felt after a certain white-haired man walked into the tattoo parlor.





	Stings a Little

**Author's Note:**

> My Secret Santa 2018 gift for writing-is-my-wonderland @tumblr. STILL ON TIME! Only just, I know, but man that was one long-ass prompt. Still, it was an interesting write, hope you like it!
> 
> Grindr graphics were made by Syndeh @tumblr. Thanks, you saved my ass!  
> Jack's icon is by Shesellseagulls @tumblr.

 

**Monday, September 4th - 16:02**

The little bell above the door chimed and Hiccup looked up from the sketch on his little desk in the back of the parlor. Through the door came a white shock of hair, an uncertain smile, and that classic look of someone who has made up their mind that they want to get a tattoo but are at the same time unsure _what_ to get. Or what their mom might think.

The man lingered in front of a display with piercings, looking through the glass. He chewed his lip, keeping his gaze down on the jewelry.

“Hi, welcome!” Tooth chirped, getting up from her workstation. “How are you?”

“Fine, thanks,” the figure replied, looking up. “How are you?”

“All good. I’m Tatiana, what can I do you for?”

“I ehm… I’d like to get a piercing set?”

Hiccup heard it come out as a question, even though it probably wasn’t supposed to be. He focused on his sketch with a smile; judging from the nerves, this was his first piercing. He better not be asking for-

“A nipple piercing.”

Oh. Well. This would be interesting. Hiccup put down his pencil and stood up, just as Tooth pointed their customer in his direction. She herself doesn’t pierce anything beyond ears because of reasons.

“Henry does our piercings, so he’s the man to talk to!”

Hiccup shook Jack’s hand, wearing his welcoming you’re-getting-your-first-decoration smile. As he did so, he got the nagging feeling that he’d seen this guy before somewhere.

“Hey, I’m Hiccup.”

“Jack. And I thought she just called you Henry?”

Hiccup laughed and shook his head. “Only Tooth insists on using my actual name. Just call me Hiccup. So, I heard you wanted to get a piercing?”

“Yeah…” Jack smiled a goofy smile and scratched the back of his neck. “Finally got the courage to do it. But I don’t know which kind I want yet.”

“That’s all right, you’re gonna have to wear either a bar or a ring at first anyway.” Hiccup briefly explained how piercings needed to heal. Only after a few weeks were the fancier, pretty designs were allowed. Jack here would have plenty of time to pick something nice.

“So… we’re gonna do this right now?”

Hiccup shrugged. “I have time, and it won’t take long. Is now good for you?”

Jack visibly hesitated… but then nodded.

“Cool! Shirt off then, and have a seat. Do you want a bar or a ring?”

“Eh… a bar.”

“Good, cause I see we’re out of rings,” Hiccup said with a laugh as he rummaged through his supplies. It got him a little giggle from Jack. “Something unrelated, but I have to ask, Jack,” Hiccup said as he gathered the tools he needed. “Are you from around here? I have the feeling I’ve seen you before, but I don’t know where.”

“No, not at all. But I have to say… you look familiar too! I can’t put my finger on it though.”

Hiccup nodded. “Exact. Same. Feeling.” He disinfected his tools and clamped Jack’s nipple in a special apparatus. As he worked, he tried to have some decency and not let his eyes wander all over the very attractive chest in front of him.

“I know, uncomfortable,” he said, referring to the apparatus. “I’ll be quick.” He grabbed the needle and gave Jack a small grin. “This might sting a little.”

“Oh you’re liking this way too much,” Jack accused him.

Hiccup’s grin widened. “Now that would be very unprofessional of me. On three?”

Jack closed his eyes and nodded.

“One… _two_ -” Hiccup shot the needle through.

“AAH MOTHERFUCKER!”

“Three!”

**Thursday, September 7th - 15:50**

The little bell above the door chimed again. Hiccup looked up and had a distinct deja-vu feeling when the same shock of white hair came in. Only this time there was a lot less nervous looking-about and studying piercings, and a lot more heading straight for Hiccup.

“Hi! How’s your nipple doing?”

“That’s an unusual greeting. But I’m fine, thanks,” Jack said. “I hoped I might find you here though.” He held out a blank, white, cardboard box. “We were doing some experimenting today, and this was the result. We can’t sell it, so I am giving some away, and I wanted to say thank you for the good care.”

Hiccup accepted the box. The bottom was cold to the touch.

“Ehh… thanks? What is it?”

“Oh, right! I didn’t mention I work across the street, did I?”

Hiccup peered past Jack, out of the store-window. He spotted a boutique and a patisserie from this angle, meaning the box was probably-

“Oh, I’m hurt!” Jack said quasi offended. “There is a patisserie there!”

Hiccup shrugged. “Never been there before. My taste in sweets is not refined enough for such a establishment, methinks.”

Jack laughed and said in a posh, British accent: “Well, it indeed is a most impressive palace of sugary confections. Thou should have a taste, however, and let your taste buds be amazed at the flood of exquisite flavor.” Jack flourished extravagantly.

The tattoo artist laughed and he opened the box a little to take a peek. Inside was a gorgeous, shiny, galaxy-like glazed cake.

“Oh man,” Hiccup said, thoroughly impressed. He whistled softly and motioned for Tooth and Heather to come over as well. The moment Tooth saw what was in the box, she gave a high pitched squeal of joy and ran off to get a knife and plates and forks.

“You make this?”

“Jup,” Jack said proudly. “It’s actually easier than it looks.”

“Even so. If it tastes even half as good as it looks…”

It was scary to cut into it though… both Tooth and Hiccup hesitated to put the knife down, for they didn’t want to blemish that wonderful glazing. In the end it was Heather who cared more for getting a slice than staring at the stars.

Under Jack’s gaze, Hiccup took the first bite. As it turned out, the cake did not taste half as good as it looked. It tasted _even better_.

“Like an angel having continuous orgasms on my tongue,” Hiccup mumbled as he closed his eyes in bliss. It earned him a swat from Tooth.

“Thank you,” Jack said. “It was made with love.”

“How much love?”

“About a dozen angel’s worth.”

They laughed, and Tooth waved her fork at them both. “ANIMALS!”

 

**Thursday, September 7th - 21:15**

The little doorbell rang for the last time of the day, as Hiccup closed the door behind him. He locked it and headed for his motorbike, but his mind was elsewhere. Again, Hiccup had had the nagging feeling that he knew Jack from somewhere. It had been on the tip of his tongue for the whole afternoon, and it was driving him crazy that he couldn’t place the guy.

He drove home, lost in thought, and walked to his apartment on auto-pilot. It was already dark out - the parlor closed at 9 pm - and the hallway to his front door was dim. Thus, he initially didn’t see his cat behind Mrs. Leafleys ugly potted plant, until it meowed and rubbed up against his legs.

“Toothless?! What the hell are you doing here? You should be inside, stupid cat!”

“Meow!”

“That’s no excuse, mister!” Hiccup picked up his feline friend. “How did you even get out this time, hmm?”

“Mew. Meow!” Toothless licked Hiccup’s cheek.

“Yeah. Love you too, furball.”

Said furball had interrupted Hiccup’s auto-pilot though, which turned out to be a good thing. Otherwise he might have stepped on the small, white box on the ground in front of his door.

“Seems like we got a little gift, Toothless.” Hiccup unlocked the door, set Toothless inside, and picked up the box. It was plain white, unmarked, with a little card stuck to it with tape. Hiccup closed the door and set it on the kitchen counter so he could take off his coat and shoes. When he came back into the kitchen, Toothless was on the counter, sniffing the box curiously.

“Shoo. You know you’re not allowed up here.”

Toothless meowed offended and jumped down.

“Don’t pretend you’re starving, there is food in your bowl, fatso,” Hiccup said as he flipped over the card on the box.

 

 

 

> _Hi!_
> 
> _I keep missing you when I get out of work,_
> 
> _so I guess you always work later than me._
> 
> _Still, here is a little something I made._
> 
> _Hope you like it!_
> 
> _Your new neighbor,_
> 
> _Jack_

 

Hiccup’s eyes widened in surprise, and he opened the box. He came face-to-cake with a miniature version of the galaxy-glazed pastry Jack had brought to the tattoo parlor earlier that day!

Marveling at the massive coincidence of it all, Hiccup grabbed a key, made sure Toothless didn’t sneak out again, and knocked on the door of number 409.

A familiar, pajama-clad man opened the door.

“Oh, hey, pajama party?”

“Hah, I wish. I’m a baker, I get up at 4:30 in the morning.”

“Oh, shit! Sorry!” Hiccup apologized. “I didn’t wake you I hope?”

“No worries, I hadn’t gone to bed yet. What’s up?”

“I just wanted to say thanks for the cake. Again.”

Jack frowned. “You came all the way out here to say- Oh! Hang on!”

“Jup, I’m your neighbor. So as I said, thanks _again_ for the cake. I think the miniature version suits the decoration better. Makes you feel like you own the whole galaxy, holding it in the palm of your hand.”

“Sounds like something a Sith-Lord would say.”

“Damn, I’ve been found out.” Hiccup laughed awkwardly. He hesitated a little, not quite knowing what to say next, but feeling like he couldn’t just go back inside either. They met _again_ for the third time in just a few days, and Hiccup just _knew_ that he recognized this man. The fates were seriously fucking with him.

Suddenly, Jack yelled. “OH! I KNOW!”

“What?”

“Burgess High!”

“Yes?”

“It’s where I know you from! You fixed my monstrosity of an attempt at a bird house in Shop!”

It was the link Hiccup’s brain had been looking for. Memories came flooding in, placing Jack’s likeness at high school, all those years ago. “I don’t recall that bird-house failure, but I do remember you now. Finally!”

Hiccup carefully didn’t mention that instead of remembering the birdhouse, his most prominent memories were of Jack changing after PE. That had been quite the sight at the time, but it didn’t seem like a socially acceptable thing to blurt out.

“Now I’ll finally be able to sleep without this nagging me,” Jack joked. “Which I really should do now. Sleep, I mean.”

“Right, sorry. I should let you get some shut-eye. We’ll talk later. I can show you the best bars in town if you like.”

“That’s a deal. For now, good night, or I’ll mess up all those galaxies tomorrow.” Jack grinned sheepishly, and Hiccup wished him a good night, retreating to his own apartment.

He sat on the couch in wonder, stuffing his face with constellations and nebula’s. What a way to meet someone again.

 

**Saturday, September 9th - 23:30**

As promised, Guide Henry “Hiccup” Haddock had taken it upon himself to show Jack the good spots in town. Good according to a borderline punk tattoo artist, of course. Over the course of two weeks they went to Hiccup’s favorite two bars and the only solid Irish pub in town. To change things up, Hiccup suggested they try a club instead, but Jack had looked a bit… pensive. Of course the tattoo artist had instantly offered to go somewhere else - there were plenty of other places to go - but Jack had waved his hand, saying it would be fun.

And here they were, music flowing over them, drowning out any voices. It thrummed and boomed and whined, demanding they moved to the beat. Hiccup looked how the white-haired man besides him answered that call, jumping and swaying and dancing like no-one was watching. And besides Hiccup, probably no-one was. It made him smile to see Jack let go like that. Clearly this was more Jack’s kind of music, and Hiccup wondered why the other had been hesitant in the first place. He pushed the thought away though; with Jack going nuts like this, Hiccup could not stay behind, of course.

The tattoo artist danced with equal enthusiasm, sweat drenching his black tank top. His leg would bother him tomorrow, but that was a concern for later. All was fine - great even - until _they_ came along.

Apparently someone else had been watching Jack after all. Two women, scarcely dressed, suddenly popped up on either side of Jack. Short miniskirts, low-cut tops, and a lipstick that glowed in the clubs black light.

The problem wasn’t with their outfits, of course, but rather with their attitude. They moved as if they owned Jack. As if there was no other option than for Jack to be untested in them. They started to dance uncomfortably close to Jack, snapping him out of the trance he had just been in. Some men might be pleased with such attention, but Jack seemed only uncomfortable. He smiled apologetically and tried to back up, but they were on either side of him.

The one in the front turned around and pressed back against Jack. The poor man’s eyes went wide and he looked at Hiccup, who was frowning and had stopped dancing.

When the lady behind Jack started to wrap an arm around him, Jack tried to shake her off, unsuccessfully.

Hiccup had seen enough. He grabbed grindy-lady by the arms and effortlessly directed her elsewhere. She looked like she wanted to protest, but Hiccup’s Look was enough to shut her up. The second woman saw and tried to get to Hiccup instead, but the brunet was having none of it. He gestured her to get lost and gave her the same discouraging Look. Number two mouthed something to her friend which Hiccup could have sworn was the word ‘fags’ before they disappeared back into the crowd.

He hoped Jack hadn’t seen it. He looked uncomfortable enough as it was.

“Wanna go?” Hiccup screamed in his ear.

Jack just nodded, and they slithered between the mass of bodies to the exit.

Once outside, Jack took a deep breath. “Damn, I didn’t know you could have such a murderous expression.”

“Was it that bad?” Hiccup asked.

“They gave up real quick!”

“The tattoos help. I know a guy with a spiderweb on his face. You should see how fast crowds part for him!”

“Please don’t get a spiderweb on your face,” Jack said earnestly, making Hiccup laugh.

“I’m nowhere near drunk enough to even consider that, Jack.”

A giggle, and the baker seemed to finally relax a bit again. “Let’s fix that. You mentioned a good bar nearby?”

 

**Monday, September 18th - 12:00**

“How about tonight?”

“I can’t, I need to get up at 4:30 tomorrow.”

“Right. Tomorrow night?”

“Same story. We could go in the afternoon though and dinner after?”

“Working till 8 pm myself.”

“Okay…” Jack frowned. “How about Friday night? This Saturday is my bi-weekly free Saturday!”

“Sorry, but no.” Hiccup smiled apologetically. “We’re open on Friday night till 10:00 and I got booked.”

“We could go after 10?”

“No way you fell asleep last time.” Hiccup thought for a moment, sighing deeply. “This is harder than I expected… Saturday night?”

“Parents are coming over.”

“Fuck. Sunday night is a no-go I suppose?”

“Well I _am_ free on Monday so Sunday afternoon into the evening could work?”

“Sweet, that sounds like a plan!” Hiccup cheered. “Finally a date!”

“Oh, you’re going on a date?” Tooth interjected from behind her desk. “How adorable!”

“Oh, can it!” Hiccup called back. “It’s just a gaming night. I can’t help that Mr. Frost here is impossible to get an appointment with.”

“I could say the same to you! This sure takes a lot of planning,” Jack complained.

“You’re the one that gets up at 4:30 am,” Hiccup pointed out. “Which is, in my humble opinion, insane.”

“I make up for it with pie. What’s your excuse for working so damn late every day?”

“I did not destroy your nipple.”

“Not sure if that’s an excuse to work late, but also-” he covered his nipple with his hand. “-point taken. So, will you bring pizza?”

 

**Sunday, September 24th - 01:15**

Jack had complained they always went to the same two or three bars that just happened to be Hiccup’s favorites.

Hiccup had fixed that by planning a pub crawl. Go to a bar, have a drink there, and move on the the next. Simple and fun.

They had definitely seen more than the previously standard two bars… but Hiccup wondered how much of it Jack would remember the next morning.

“Jack, le… let’s get a cab,” he slurred. They were standing outside of yet another rowdy establishment, trying to talk the bouncer into letting them in.

“Whaaaat? Whyyyyyy. This bar looks cool.” Jack turned to the bouncer. “We’re on a… a pub crawl, you know? Just one drink!”

“You’ll be crawling all right,” the bouncer said with a deep chuckle.

Before Jack could reply, Hiccup interjected. “Jack, do you remember what number bar this is?”

Jack took a step back and looked at the window. It had a big 47 in it.

“47, duh.”

“No, you idiot, that’s the name.” Hiccup himself had lost count too though. He knew there should have been 10 pubs in the planned crawl, but for the life of him he couldn’t remember how many they’d actually visited. All he knew was that they’d made a valiant effort to explore as many bars as they humanly could, before the alcohol exceeded their tolerance. “Come on. Time to go home.” He grabbed Jack’s hand and pulled him away, leaving the bouncer behind to shake his head.

A short cab-ride later, they were at their apartment complex. Jack struggled with the key to open the front door, but when Hiccup offered to help, he insisted he was fine and that he should open the door. As a true gentleman. Hiccup just laughed.

Eventually someone came out. The door nearly hit Jack in the face but it did give them the opportunity to get inside. Jack mumbled he’d almost got it anyway, and Hiccup laughed.

A giggly elevator-ride ensued, followed by even more hushed giggles and exclamations as they made their way along the hallway. Neither really knew what they were giggling about anymore; they just were.

Finally, they were at their front doors. Jack teetered sideways and steadied himself against the wall.

“You okay there, bud?”

“Yeahimfffffine.”

“Uh-huh. Come on, get your keys.”

With some help from Hiccup they opened Jack’s apartment. Hiccup pulled Jack’s arm across his shoulders and supported Jack with a hand under his armpit. Like that he kept Jack more or less upright as he carried him inside. He left the door open and led Jack to his bedroom. There he tried to gently lower Jack onto the bed, which was more or less successful; it was not very gentle, but Jack _was_ on the bed.

“You gotta undress, Jack,” Hiccup said.

“Hmmmngfhfff.”

“Right. Need a hand?”

“Mmmnffggf… fine.”

“First coherent word you said since we got here,” Hiccup teased. He took Jack’s shoes off, and then his coat, dumping it on the floor. Then he tried to take Jack’s shirt off, but undressing a ragdoll human was harder than one might assume, so he gave up. Besides, he felt a bit pervy getting that touchy-feely with Jack’s wonderful abs. Next were his jeans, which proved easier… although the boxer briefs decided to slide down along with the jeans and now it was even more awkward than with Jack’s shirt. Hiccup tried not to stare and pulled them back up.

At least Jack wouldn’t remember this the next morning.

 

**Sunday, September 24th - 11:37**

They always say that drinking is like borrowing happiness from tomorrow. Hiccup’s current headache drove that point home all right. He groaned and rolled onto his stomach, squinting against the little ray of sunlight peeking between his curtains.

He would have loved to stay in bed a little longer, but his screaming bladder made a strong case to get up. So Hiccup did, tanking some water and Aspirin on the way back.

Although as far as hangovers went, this wasn’t his worst one ever. He wondered how Jack was doing.

 _Bzzzt bzzzzt_.

Speaking of the devil.

 

Hiccup chuckled and shook his head. Seemed like his friend needed some Hangover First Aid.

Not too much later, Jack was sitting in front of a big glass of water, watching a fizzing tablet dissolve. It promised sweet sweet relief of the throbbing in his head, and he eyed it longingly.

“I can’t believe you didn’t even have Alka Seltzer,” Hiccup said as he baked some eggs with a side of extra salty bacon.

“I only got NyQuil for when I get sick,” Jack replied with a groan.

“Could be worse. You could be puking your guts out.”

“Don’t tempt me.”

Hiccup laughed. “You never went out like this?”

“If with ‘like this’ you mean ‘get so hammered I forget how I got home’, then no. You’re a bad influence.”

“Why thank you, I take great pride in that. But I do come with aftercare.” Hiccup put a plate in front of his friend. “Here you go, snowflake, eat up. Then we’ll park our asses on my couch until you feel better.”

Jack scoffed. “Then I might sit there forever.”

“That’s a chance I’ll take,” Hiccup said with a grin.

 

**Wednesday, October 4th - 13:00**

“See you Saturday!”

The bell on the parlor door chimed again, and Jack was gone, leaving Hiccup with a box of fruity pastries and a little smile on his lips.

“He was so checking you out, man,” Ruff said from across the room.

“What? He was not, he was just bringing cake!” Hiccup replied.

“Nope, he totally did,” Tuff agreed.

“Methinks Hiccup here has the hots for him too,” Ruff said.

“He’s just a friend, guys. Come on, not everything has to be gay.”

“Face it, Hiccup, this guy will soon be coming in to have you set a piercing on his lower regions just so you get into his pants.”

“Trust me there is nothing sexy about getting a metal bar shot through your dick head,” Hiccup deadpanned. Ruff cringed visibly. “Besides, what would you guys know? Did you guys suddenly develop an impeccable gaydar, is that it?”

The twins laughed. “Our gaydars have always been perfect!”

Hiccup shook his head. “As I recall it, both of you lost money when Heather started a bet that I was gay. So forgive me if I don’t trust your sparkle-sense one bit. He’s probably straight.”

“Oh, so if he wasn’t you’d be interested?”

“Don’t you guys have something better to do than hang out here?”

“No, not really,” Ruff said.

“It’s our part-time job to annoy you,” Tuff added.

“Will you shut up if I give you one of these pastries?”

“What kind are they?”

Hiccup looked in the box again. “Something with strawberry I think.”

“Deal.”

 

**Saturday, October 7th - 22:50**

“Sleep tight,” Hiccup said.

“Thanks, you too. See you soon.” With a final wave, Jack went inside, and both closed their door. Hiccup sighed and went around his living room, picking up the empty beer bottles. He placed a few leftover slices of pizza in his fridge. It was a shame Jack was used to sleeping so early, because even if he had the next day off, he never stayed really late. Once they’d tried, and he had fallen asleep on the couch mid conversation.

They’d been talking about High School tonight, making fun of their old teachers and each other. Damn, they had done some idiotic stuff. Like that time Hiccup had been caught smoking under the tribunes, and he’d proceeded to sprint across the athletics field, chased by Mr. Black. Jack had seen that happen from a distance and had wondered who this idiot was to run away from Mr. Black.

Hiccup too finally remembered the incident in Shop. Jack had phenomenally screwed up his “birdhouse” during shop. Yes, the quotation marks were most definitely necessary there, for it only resembled a “bird house” in the most expressionistic cubist way. Hiccup had helped out the poor nerd after school for a passing grade. Jack admitted how scared he’d been to ask Hiccup for help because he had looked very intimidating back then, which made Hiccup laugh. He never considered himself intimidating.

 What Hiccup did not discuss out loud, however, were certain inappropriate memories he had of Jack. Memories of how Hiccup had stared at the other in the locker rooms. How a tiny little crush had made Hiccup realize he was gay. How he’d fantasized… certain things.

And how Jack was still goddamn hot in the present.

It led to certain frustrations Hiccup had to keep to himself. And now Jack was gone, a tent in Hiccup’s pants demanded some attention.

How long ago had it been since he’d had some dick? Ages, at least. Maybe there would be someone on Grindr to hook up with. It wasn’t that late yet so he might get lucky. And if not, his tattoos usually drew enough attention to get at least some sexting action.

He installed the app again - he had deleted it for the umpteenth time - and made an account. As his profile pic he took a snap of his chest, showing off the tattoo on his upper arm, half his face carefully out of frame. Within minutes he was up and running.

He scrolled down, and then immediately back up. The digital version of a double take, if you will.

Right next to his own icon.

Right there.

A picture of Jack’s face. Nickname: snowflake. He was online, and according to his otherwise empty profile looking for ‘Right Now’.

Seems like Hiccup wasn’t the only one yearning some dick. The tattoo artist debated for a bit whether he should even send him a message or not… while he himself got a bunch of messages from others. He took a look, but it was just a collection of too-old guys or fuckbois opening with a dickpick and the words “suck it”. Great. That still hadn’t changed.

Oh what the hell. He might as well shoot Jack a message, right? Anything better than the ‘other’ attention he was getting.

Jack then sent him a emoji of a polaroid with an eggplant on it, followed by a question mark. Hiccup laughed.

****

Hiccup closed Grindr and switched to WhatsApp. Much better for actual chatting, and also much easier to take pics with. Besides, he was getting really tired from all those grandpas and fuckbois that kept messaging him.

Hiccup chuckled and started recording. He grinned a little at the camera and bit his lip before he panned down and lifted his shirt, rubbing his hand over his bare chest and stomach. His pants were too dark to show off much of his growing bulge, but it was there.

A few seconds later, Hiccup got a video from Jack. He too standing in front of his bathroom mirror, wearing nothing but his boxer briefs. Those left little to the imagination, showing the clear outline of his hard dick. Jack smiled shyly at the camera and ran a hand over his stomach, stopping right at the edge of his briefs. The hand then went up and gently nudged his nipple piercing. Jack moaned slightly and closed his eyes as he played with it.

The video was over way too soon in Hiccup’s humble opinion. He played it again while palming himself through his boxers.

Hiccup took off his shirt and jeans, lying back down on the couch. He took a picture which 1) showed his bulge off way better and 2) displayed the start of a tattoo just above the edge of his boxers. He’d pulled them down just a little so he could show that off.

Jack was silent for a while. When he replied, it was with a picture of his own. He still had his boxer briefs on, but he’d shoved his hand down into them to angle his dick, making the fabric tent out. It was lifting the briefs a bit as well, allowing Hiccup a peek inside at a smoothly shaved groin and the base of Jack’s dick.

Hiccup pulled down his boxers completely. With his free hand he pushed his cock up so it didn’t cover the tattoo, and he took a picture. He didn’t bother pulling his boxers up again. Instead, he slowly stroked his hard-on.

Hiccup grinned broadly, glad his gamble had paid off. He threw on a bathrobe so he could open the door.

 

**Saturday, October 7th - 23:45**

They stood in Hiccup’s hallway, suddenly a bit awkward when it was face to face instead of through a smartphone screen.

“You eh… you wanna do this?” Hiccup asked, his mouth suddenly as dry as a camel’s ass in the dessert.

“This is just sex, right?” Jack asked. He was chewing on his lip, and it was frankly irresistible.

“As far as I’m concerned, yes. Just sex.”

“No complicated feelings getting involved here?”

“Nope. Just you, me, your piercing, and my mouth.”

“Fuck yes.” Just like that, Jack went for the brunets mouth. The first kiss was hesitant, as if testing the waters. It was brief, but the soft lips lingered less than an inch away. Hiccup closed the distance again, more confident. Hiccup felt the other lick at his lip-piercing, and he parted his lips somewhat. He pulled their bodies together, and he could feel Jack’s hardon through his pants.

This was going to be a fun night.

 

**Sunday, October 8th - 9:00**

Hiccup was rudely awoken by Jack stirring besides him. The white-haired man escaped from the tight clutch of Hiccup’s arms, sat up, and stretched, yawning _loudly_. Hiccup groaned and half-heartedly pushed against Jack’s chest in an attempt to get him to lie down again.

“It’s too earlyyyy,” he whined.

“It’s 9 am.”

“Yes. I know,” Hiccup groaned. “Too early.”

“You do realize this is sleeping in for me?”

“Lies. This is getting up early.”

Jack laughed. “No, you big baby, four thirty a.m. is early.”

“Come oooon,” Hiccup pushed a little harder, now also pulling using his other hand. Finally Jack yielded and he lay back down. Hiccup snuggled up to him, not intending to let go. “Five more minutes.”

“All right, but only ‘cause you’re so huggable.”

“Are you calling me fat?”

Another laugh. “For someone who is so tired, you sure are witty.”

“Shut up and hug me more.”

Jack obliged and they managed to get in a mutually comfortable cuddling position. Comfortable for now at least; they had a few minutes before the First Law of Cuddles took effect. This law states that there will always be at least one arm that looses blood circulation.

“You don’t mind this, do you?” Hiccup asked, suddenly unsure.

“Hell no. Why would I?”

Hiccup sighed. “Good. I wouldn’t want things to be awkward.”

“I don’t think they’re awkward. Do you?”

Hiccup pondered that for a few seconds. “Well, you’re nice, we’re still friends, and we had _amazing_ sex… so I’m cool.”

“God you can say that again. I hope the neighbors didn’t hear us.”

“At least there is one less neighbor to worry about.” They both chuckled.

“But Hiccup…” Jack started, sounding very earnest.

“Yes, Jack?”

“Your five minutes are up, and I’m hungry.”

Hiccup snorted. “Shower first?”

“You want to shower together?” Jack asked, looking down at Hiccup. “Is that okay with your leg?”

“It’ll be fine. If you think missing a foot is going to stop me from giving you head in the shower, you are gravely mistaken.”

 

**Wednesday, October 25th - 23:11**

You know the sex is good when Night-Owl-Supreme Hiccup Haddock is considering to get up as early as Jack, just so he can spend the night with him.

“How late did you get up again?” Hiccup asked.

“My alarm goes off at four-thirty.”

“Oh.”

The after-sex cuddles were also _amazing_ though. Perhaps amazing enough to sacrifice some sleep to?

Ah, fuck it. Life is too short to sleep anyway.

 

**Thursday, October 26th - 9:30**

He didn’t look too bad, did he? Hiccup tried to look at his own reflection in the store window. He hadn’t been able to sleep after Jack had gotten up… but he could live on 2 hours and coffee, right? He’d done it before.

Hiccup came through the door of the tattoo parlor, the little bell jingling over his head.

“Holy shit Hiccup, you look like shit.”

“Gee, thanks. Good to see you too, Tooth.”

 

**Monday, November 6th - 13:40**

“Don’t think I didn’t see that, Hiccup,” Tooth said with a surprised grin.

Hiccup quickly put random papers over the sketch he’d been working on. “I don’t know what you mean,” he mumbled weakly.

“It’d only be creepy if you were a stalker or something. I was wondering why you were smiling like that.”

“I was not, and you did not see anything interesting,” Hiccup persisted.

Tatiana laughed. “Of course. I must be mistaken. That was totally not Jack you were drawing just now, you would never do that! Because you totally do not fancy him, of course.”

The little doorbell rang, and a most welcome guest entered the parlor, typical white box in hand.

“Speak of the devil,” Tooth mumbled softly to a furiously blushing Hiccup. “Hello Jack! Bringing something sweet again, I see?”

“Hello Tatiana, Hiccup! And of course, how could I not? You’re dependent on me for your sugar rush now, aren’t you?”

Hiccup laughed weakly, trying to will that damn redness away from his cheeks. His cheeks did not cooperate. “Heh. Yeah. Hi, Jack. So, what do you have today?” Acting as confident and casual as he could, he came over to check out the contents of the white box.

Tooth snorted and fled to the back, desperately trying to stifle her giggles as she hunted for forks.

 

**Friday, November 10th - 15:05**

“What’s up with you, Hic?” Heather asked.

Hiccup shrugged. “Nothing. Why should something be wrong?”

“You’re looking so gloomy, I fear you’re scaring the customers away,” she said with a sarcastic laugh.

Hiccup saw himself in one of the many mirrors in the parlor and frowned. She was right; he was looking much more gloomy than he had any right to be.

Sure, Jack had canceled one of their preciously few hangout-nights, but that was no reason to be this bummed out, was it? Hiccup wasn’t the only one that wanted some of Jack’s time. His dad just needed a hand right now, which should not be a big deal at all, and the two of them would just hang out next week.

Hiccup sighed. “Just had to cancel some plans I was looking forward to,” he mumbled to Heather. “It’s nothing.”

It was nothing.

And yet, somehow, it was.

He was not at all pissed at Jack, oh no. This was way worse. He was _sad_. He just really wanted to hang out with the white-haired man more than they could, because it was _nice_.

Hiccup decided to cut himself some slack. They were friends. Who wouldn’t be disappointed if your chill-night with a friend was postponed?

He should get home in time to have dinner with Jack sometime next week. That’d be nice, instead of moping over this.

“Hey, Heather? I got a favor to ask.”

 

**Tuesday, November 21st - 12:33**

Was Hiccup buying sweets in a way too expensive _patisserie_ across the street just to say hi to Jack?

Perhaps.

But he hardly saw the guy in day-to-day life, even though they were neighbors, due to their gravely time-mismatched lives.

“Is that white-haired doofus in?” Hiccup asked. The lady who was packing his pastries nodded.

“You mean Jack? He’s in the back, yes.”

Hiccup tried to peek past her, through the doorway, into the rest of the bakery. Maybe he could wave.

The lady laughed. “I doubt you’ll see him from here though. I’ll tell him you said hi.” She was smiling in this very knowing fashion, and it made Hiccup uncomfortable. It was as if she _knew_ what they did.

Hiccup blushed, mumbled a thank you, and grabbed his bag of sugary goodness. He then spun on his heels with the intent to fast-walk out the door. He had not expected someone right behind him, and full on collided with the person. The unfortunate pastries were crushed between them, and cream squeezed out of the paper bag onto Hiccup’s hand and shirt.

“Woa, Hiccup!”

“Ah! Shit!” Hiccup looked up and saw he’d run into Jack. “Oh… ehm… hi!”

“I’m sorry,” Jack said with an apologetic smile. “I saw you in the shop but I didn’t think you’d be in such a hurry to leave!”

“Sorry, I wasn’t looking where I was going…” The brunet pouted at his bag of crushed pastries. “Shame that these ended up as collateral damage though.” He started to lick the cream of his hand and fingers to salvage at least some of it. It was all over his fingers, and it would be a shame to let it go to waste. “Hmmn!”

When he was halfway done, Hiccup noticed Jack’s red-faced stare. “What?”

“Nothing!” Jack squeaked. He cleared his throat. “I’ll uh… get you some new ones. To replace that traffic disaster.”

Jack walked away, leaving an oblivious Hiccup in his wake.

 

**Friday, December 1st - 19:22**

Hiccup stared out the window of the tattoo shop. The gods of weather were straight up pissing in his face. Thick flakes of snow floated leisurely through the air, rapidly coating everything in a blanket of pure white.

Although pretty, it was a serious threat to Hiccup’s night.

Tonight was Jack-night. Hiccup had intended to be there already, but he got held up… and now it seemed like he might have to walk home. And since it took 15 minutes by bike, that was not a nice prospect. He grabbed his phone and called Jack.

“Jaaaaaack…” he started in his sweetest voice.

“Oh no. I don’t like that tone.”

Hiccup ignored him. “Have you looked out the window?” He heard Jack walking around and after a moment of silence, the white-haired man announced the obvious observation.

“Snow.”

“Yes, snow. Lots of it!”

“You’re calling me to alert me of the pristine landscape that is our parking lot?”

“No, I’m calling cause it’s dangerous to ride my bike in this weather…”

“So… you want me to pick you up by car? Cause that’s better?”

“It is if you take Jorgenson’s pickup. He’s probably home.”

“But I got dinner on already.”

“Look, if I crash my bike there is no dinner at all.”

“Fair…” Jack sighed. “Okay, I’ll see if I can borrow Jorgenson’s car.”

“You’re the best!”

“I know,” Jack said. “But don’t stop telling me anyway.”

 

**Friday, December 1st - 20:00**

It was supposed to be a quick pickup.

It wasn’t supposed to take more than half for Jack to get to Hiccup, knock on the door, and go back home.

A shop like this was not supposed to be a place for intimacies anyway. Yet somehow here they were, Jack straddling Hiccup in his desk-chair, making out like there was no tomorrow. Jack was grinding his ass into Hiccup’s crotch, causing the chair to produce objecting squeaky sounds.

Some days their kisses were slow and tender. Other days they were exploring and cheeky. But right now they were hot and hungry, born from an undeniable and acute desire for each other.

Hiccup’s hands worked their way under Jack’s shirt as he started to kiss lower, going for Jack’s neck. The other man giggled and stretched, letting the brunet seek out the best spots to place his lips on.

“You know,” Jack said. “For a gay guy you draw sexy women very well.”

Hiccup stopped, surprised, and looked up. “Huh?”

Jack nodded to the drawing on the artist’s desk. The reason he’d been late.

“Oh! Well, I don’t get distracted by their beauty.” He kissed Jack’s neck again, making the other sigh softly.

“A fearsome power.”

“Then again, a nice male ass can get me hard.”

“I can feel that.” Jack pushed forward, grinding his bulge against Hiccup’s. Hiccup grinned, nipped at Jack’s neck, and then pulled off his shirt. He ran his hands over the familiar pale chest, licking his lips in such an awfully overdone way Jack just had to laugh. The laughter turned into soft gasps soon enough though, as Hiccup started to lick, kiss, and suck all over Jack’s chest, giving particular attention to his nipples. He knew full well how that could get the cute baker all hot and bothered.

He circled the sensitive flesh with his tongue while his hands kneaded Jack’s ass. He could feel Jack’s hand pulling slightly at his hair.

“Please tell me you have lube here,” Jack moaned.

“Get up, loose the pants. I got some in my desk.” If Jack was surprised to find out there was a very small travel-size tube of lube in Hiccup’s desk, he did not show it.

When Hiccup turned around again, there was a very hot and very naked man standing there, staring at him expectantly. His cheeks were bright red, and Hiccup scrambled to get out of his own pants too, so Jack wasn’t alone in his nakedness.

With two quick steps he was pressed up against the white-haired man, cupping his face to give him a kiss. Their naked bodies pressed together, warm skin on skin in the chilly shop.

Was taking all their clothes off a bad idea? Temperature wise, probably, yes. But like hell they were stopping just to get dressed again.

Hiccup squeezed their dicks together with one hand, slowly pumping up and down.

“Hmmmn…” Jack moaned into their kiss. He lightly dragged his nails over Hiccup’s back, making him shiver.

“Want me to…” Hiccup started. Jack shook his head and took the little tube of lubricant.

“Where should we…” Jack asked.

“Standing?” Hiccup said.

“Impractical. Height difference.”

“Tattoo bench.” The artist dragged Jack to the nearest one. “Lie on your stomach.”

Jack did as he was told and lay down, hissing at the cold leather. He popped the cap of the lube and put some on his fingers. He propped up his ass a little and started to finger himself, making soft noises.

Hiccup didn’t just stand to watch - although that would have been fun in its own way. He ran his hand over Jack’s delicious ass, and then up his back, until he was standing right next to his lover’s face. He stepped close, his hard dick pointing at Jack. Hiccup didn’t even need to ask; Jack opened his mouth and licked at the tip, moaning obscenely. Hiccup put a hand in those soft white locks and pushed half his dick inside.

“Oooooh… fuck yes,” he said in a low voice. “That’s good…”

Hiccup slowly pulled back until he was just out of Jack’s mouth. A string of saliva ran between the tip of his cock and Jack’s lips. He pulled back his foreskin and went back in, pushing more of his hard-on into Jack’s mouth. Two-thirds of the way now, and Jack sucked it in eagerly, wiggling his tongue around Hiccup.

After a while, Jack pushed at Hiccup’s hip, and he backed off.

“I’m ready,” Jack said. “Fuck me, before I freeze to death.”

Hiccup rolled his eyes and climbed on the bed, spreading Jack’s legs a little. Just as he was about to push inside, a phone rang. It was Jack’s cell.

“Leave it. Come ooooon,” Jack whined. Hiccup could not resist, of course. His dick pressed against the ring of muscle, and after a brief moment, slipped past. “Nnnng… OoooOOH!”

Hiccup kept pushing in slowly, knowing Jack could take it. The man was moaning and groaning underneath him, but did not tell him to stop.

Jack’s cell rang again, and again they ignored it.

Hiccup’s groin pressed up against Jack’s ass. He was all the way in.

Then the parlor phone rang.

“Don’t you dare pull out,” Jack warned. The other chuckled and kissed his back.

“Wasn’t thinking of it.”

He slowly started to fuck Jack, getting soft gasps and precious moans with every little move. Jack was so incredibly vocal, and Hiccup could not get enough of it.

A different ring-tone resounded through the shop. Hic’s phone.

“OK, what the fuck?” Hiccup said.

“Oh come on! Fuck that, don’t stooooop!”

“No really, Jack, they seem serious.”

“My need is serious too!”

Hiccup sighed and pulled out, ignoring the whines and curses of his lover. He grabbed his cell and picked up.

“Haddock.”

…

“Oh, hey. No we’re uh… we’re at the store! Yeah. We needed something and were out anyway, so… Yeah, we’ll be back soon… Thanks, bye!” Hiccup hung up and turned to Jack. “Jorgenson. He thought we’d crashed because we were taking so long.”

Jack sighed and banged his head on the bed. “Ugh. Fine. Let’s go.”

 

**Friday, December 1st - 20:20**

Is road-head a good idea under normal circumstances?

Probably not.

Is it a good idea in heavy-snowfall?

Definitely not.

Did that stop Hiccup from reaching out on the way home to undo Jack’s fly?

No. It did not. The sight of Jack still horny - with a obvious bulge in his jeans - was very tempting, and the driving baker did not stop Hiccup as he undid his pants and pulled his cock out. He just asked: “what are you doing?”

“I am going to worship your dick with my mouth.”

As expected, Jack blushed a deep, dark red at that. Even in the limited light inside the car, it was very clear. Hiccup laughed.

“Gods you’re so adorable. Keep us on the road, okay?”

Granted, ‘worshiping Jack’s cock with his mouth’ made it sound way more successful than it actually was, but there was an honest attempt. Hiccup bent over so his face was just over Jack’s dick. He rubbed the tip a little with his fingers and precum actually _ran down_ over Hiccup’s fingers. He quickly licked it up. Jack moaned loudly. He always had a lot of precum to begin with, and being interrupted and kept on edge like this… Hiccup wouldn’t be surprised if there was a bit of a wet spot on Jack’s boxer briefs.

The brunet took Jack in his mouth and started to bob his head up and down best he could, kissing and licking in between, and from the cacophony of curses and groans Jack produced, he was doing something right, despite the awkward angle and the limited amount of dick he could reach through Jack’s fly like this.

“OH FUCK!”

Jack suddenly slammed the brakes and grabbed the wheel with both hands, hitting Hiccup with his elbow in the process. As if that wasn’t enough, the poor tattoo artist hit his head against the wheel too.

“Jezus Christ, Frost!” Hiccup managed to scramble back into his seat. “What was that?!”

Jack panted, staring at the road. His fingers were gripping the wheel so tight his knuckles turned white.

“Are you okay?”

“Yeah. Almost hit a cat.”

The poor man looked even paler than usual. Hiccup ruffled Jack’s hair. “Well, you didn’t hit anything. So lets just get home, okay?”

Jack nodded and took a deep breath. With shaking hands he fixed his pants.

They got home quickly enough, and returned the car keys to Jorgenson. They thanked him again for borrowing his truck, and Jack - with a blush on his face - promised pastries of some kind next week.

Then they hurried to Jack’s home, and Hiccup saw why he’d been blushing so much while talking to Jorgenson. He was _still hard_.

“Dude, you were hard the whole time?”

“Yes!” Jack hissed. He quickly closed the door behind them. “So for the love of god finish what you started!”

Hiccup grinned and dropped to his knees, making short work of Jack’s pants and underpants. There was a big wet spot on his boxer briefs, and his dick was all sticky.

“Oh my god this is embarrassing,” Jack moaned, hiding his face behind his hands.

Hiccup licked over Jack’s balls, all the way to the tip. “Fuck no, it’s incredible,” Hiccup said. He let his tongue run all over, tasting as much of Jack as he could.

“Hmmnn…” Jack moaned softly.

Hiccup grinned a little sucked on the glistening tip, his cheeks hollowing, his tongue swirling. But then he let go again and went back to pleasuring Jack’s balls instead.

“Oh for fuck sake, Hiccup!” Jack twitched and a bead of precum ran down his dick. “Stop teasing! Not now!”

The brunet chuckled but obliged, and took as much of Jack’s dick into his mouth as he could, jerking off what didn’t fit. He started to bob up and down rapidly, sucking hard. It didn’t take long for Jack to cum.

“Oooh… OH! AAAH! AHhmmnn Hiccup!”

Hiccup’s mouth was flooded with cum. He moaned around Jack’s dick, swallowing it all down. When he was done, he let it slip from his mouth, not bothering to pull the pants back up. They didn’t need them anymore. Not tonight.

“You liked that?”

“God yes…” Jack was leaning against the wall, panting. He steadied himself with both hands against the wallpaper. “Amazing…”

“Then get your amazing ass to the bedroom, snowflake.” Hiccup said with a broad grin. “I’m going to fuck you like there is no tomorrow.”

 

**Saturday, December 2nd - 02:37**

Light came in from the hallway, illuminating most of “Jack’s side” of the bed. The white haired man was lying on his side, fast asleep. They’d cuddled like that; Jack had been the little spoon cause he loved that so much, but when he’d fallen asleep, Hiccup had rolled away. Cuddles were divine, but he couldn’t fall asleep on his side for the life of him.

They’d turned off the lights in the bedroom, because those had been within easy reach… but the hallway light was further away. Neither had cared enough to get up and turn it off; cuddling in post-sex bliss was way too good.

Hiccup stared at Jack’s back. There was a hickey on his shoulder. He put it there, he realized with a grin. It was sexy.

The brunet had to admit these were his favorite moments: just lying in bed and staring at Jack.  Too bad they were so rare. The other woke up so damn early that Hiccup never got the chance to admire the other in the early morning light, even though he’d love to. And he didn’t want to awkwardly stare at him while awake, because staring like that definitely sounded too couple-y. So instead, he had to make do with the ugly illumination from a light bulb shining through the doorway at 2-something in the morning.

At least Jack was still beautiful, regardless of the light. His body partially revealed, his breathing slow and deep. The way his hair was all messy from their lovemaking. The other imperfections Hiccup had left on the otherwise perfect, pale skin. It was calming, and mesmerizing, and other such -ings.

He reached out to trace a finger over Jack’s back… but then he froze.

Oh no. No no no no no. What on earth was he doing? They’d clearly said the first time they hooked up: no feelings. And what was he having now? Goddamn feelings is what.

This was bad. Really bad. He had to get out of there.

As quiet as he could, he slipped out of the bed and got dressed. On his way out, he looked back from the doorway, casting a shadow all the way onto Jack. He shook his head.

Fucking idiot.

The rest of his night was spent in his own bed, twisting and turning.

 

**Saturday, December 2nd - 8:00**

The next morning Hiccup got a text from Jack, asking why he was gone already and if everything was all right.

“Sure, just peachy,” Hiccup mumbled at his phone at 8 in the morning. “I only fucked up the single best thing in my life by getting all sappy. No big deal.” Normally he’d still be asleep at this time, so he decided to not respond to the text until later. He tossed his phone aside and turned himself into a blanket burrito and tried to forget about the world. Sadly right now was no different from the previous six hours; sleeping was impossible.

“Fuck.”

Hiccup instead took a long shower - ignoring the knocking on his door around noon. Then he binged cat videos on YouTube while petting Toothless. At 1 pm, he eventually answered Jack’s text briefly, saying that he had been very tired and that he needed the extra sleeping in. It was a lame excuse, he knew, but he couldn’t come up with anything else at the moment.

His phone buzzed again.

God, why was this guy so sweet? Any interaction with Jack right now was definitely a bad idea, however. Hiccup would just have to steer clear of him for a while and come up with a million excuses until he could get his shit together and handle… this. Shouldn’t be too hard to avoid him, considering their vastly different workdays.

He put his phone down and sighed. He tried to watch TV, but every program seemed to somehow be linked to Jack in some way. TLC had some baking program. Discovery played a documentary on the arctic. Jack loved snow. An obscure music channel played Pink Floyd; the gods of music according to Jack. The news: heavy snowfall all around. Hiccup sighed and turned the TV off again.

This sucked. The more he tried _not_ to think of his cute neighbor, the more he actually thought about him, and that was endlessly frustrating. He didn’t need to be reminded time and time again how pretty his face was, or how cute he laughed. And gods forbid he didn’t need to see that partially lit body from last night every time he closed his eyes in an attempt to take a nap.

Hiccup tried to take another gulp of coffee when he noticed how much his hand was shaking. A full night without sleep followed by too much caffeine in an attempt to feel better didn’t go down so well with him as it used to, apparently.

Hiccup hated - loathed, detested, despised - admitting his own weakness… but he had to be real for a moment. He was supposed to work this afternoon, and he was in no way, shape, or form capable of setting a tattoo today. He didn’t want this situation to be a big deal, but he had to be honest and admit that it was.

With a pit in his stomach, he canceled his afternoon appointment - the project that had kept him in the parlor so late last night, requiring Jack to pick him up - and he called in sick with Heather. He grabbed his Marshall headphones and put on the loudest, most aggressive metal he knew. Really, most would not even go as far as to call this music. But if that’s what it took to keep him sane today, so be it.

With a weary sigh, he dropped himself onto the couch, hugging a pillow to his chest.

Feelings sucked.

 

**Wednesday, December 6th - 16:12**

“Hiccup, did you just dive into the restroom just because Jack came into the shop?”

Hiccup flushed red but furiously shook his head at Tooth. “Don’t be ridiculous! Why would I even do such a thing? Jack is my friend.”

“I don’t know, but this is the third day in a row you are suddenly ‘out’. Yesterday you left a client on your chair.”

“I’d eaten something bad. I could not stay seated.”

Tooth was giving him an unimpressed Stare.

“Look, I don’t wanna talk about it. Just cover me for a while, okay? Please?”

Tatiana shook her head, brightly colored hair swishing left and right. “Whatever you say, Henry.”

 

**Thursday, December 7th - 15:32**

 

**Friday, December 15th - 21:43**

Another late night. Another two texts of Jack that he had first ignored, then felt bad about ignoring, and answered with a stupid excuse even his gullible grandmother would not believe. Seriously, Hiccup had to work on his lying. It wasn’t “clown accident can’t talk now”- level bad yet, but it was getting pretty close to “the dog ate my homework”.

Hiccup trudged up the few steps to his apartment complex, and into the elevator. One short ride later, he shuffled out onto his hallway, ready to lock himself in and try to come up with a way to tell Jack what was actually going on. Because from the other’s texts, it was pretty clear that he knew something was up, and he desperately wanted to talk about it, but Hiccup kept pushing him away. The brunet knew how dangerous that was. It was only a matter of time before Jack was be done and actually backed off. Then he’d stay away forever, and Hiccup would have lost a very good fuck-buddy, a great friend, and his steady supply of sweets.

When his front door came into view - and thus also Jack’s - he caught a glimpse of someone entering Jack’s apartment. A guy Hiccup had never seen before. Jack closed the door, and Hiccup was nailed to the floor.

Was he cast aside already? Did he mean that little to Jack? Already, this guy was having different hookups?! Hiccup had somehow held hope that the feelings he’d developed despite their agreement were at least a little bit mutual. That they could work with that, still have a good friendship at worst, and more than fwb at best. But apparently he was no more than a dick and a good piece of ass.

He swallowed thickly and forced himself to walk. Just a bit more. Inside his house he could let it out, not here, in the hallway.

In front of Jack’s door, he slowed. Part of him wanted to listen what was going on; push his ear up against the door to hear if they were really having sex. If Jack was screaming for that faceless man like he did for Hiccup.

He kept walking. He didn’t want to actually hear that. Fuck no. Hiccup fled inside and turned on some loud music to drown it all out. AC/DC would keep him safe from whatever transpired in the adjacent apartment. Guitars scream and Young’s riffs fill his ears, drowning out whatever noises might bleed through the thin walls.

The cover of music worked both ways. Hiccup was free to curse all he wanted, and no-one heard anything other than Hells Bells. He cried, tears turning his vision blurry as he threw a pillow across the room. He was angry at Jack, for thinking so little of him, and he hated the random guy that had turned up to have sex with him. Jack was too good for a random stranger.

But most of all Hiccup was mad at himself. He’d ignored Jack in the hopes that his feelings would subside, and after that to stall for time to gather the courage he needed to tell him how he really felt. He’d just taken too long. It was that simple. He’d fucked up, his chance was gone, and now all that love and hope turned to pain.

That night he did something he hadn’t done in a long time: he cried himself to sleep.

 

**Sunday, December 17th - 01:12**

Hiccup looked at the massage and swallowed hard. He did not - could not - respond.

 

**Tuesday, December 19th - 21:11**

Christmas was approaching. With the onset of even more frequent snow, jolly songs on every radio station, and increasing numbers of gift cards sold at the parlor, came the uncomfortable yet inevitable Christmas-call from Hiccup’s dad.

When his phone rang, he steeled himself with a deep breath, turned off his music, and answered.

“Hi, dad.”

“Hello, Henry. How are you?”

“I’m fine, just the usual. How are you?”

“Good, good. I was wondering, when will you come for Christmas? On the day itself, or earlier…”

So far so good. “I’ll get to you one day ahead, and spend the night.” It’s what he always did, yet his father deemed it necessary to ask anyway. Probably only because it was a prelude to the actual question the man that was on the man’s mind every year.

“And will you be coming alone, or do you have a wonderful lady to introduce to me?”

“Just dinner for two, dad.” Hiccup sighed. “And I’ve told you many times before I am bisexual. Just like last year. And the year before that. It hasn’t changed, trust me.”

Hiccup heard Stoick scoff loudly. “If you come to me, you better be introducing a nice girlfriend. Dirty sex-crazed nonsense.”

Hiccup tried to swallow his anger, but it was strong… and he already wasn’t at his best, with the whole Jack situation.

“You know what?”

“Now don’t you go making some point-”

“No no, you listen to me for a second!” Hiccup said, raising his voice. “You keep rejecting who I am! What if I come home with a guy, huh? Will you close the door on me?!”

“You will come home with a girl, or alone.” Stoick’s voice was ice cold. “I will not discuss this any further.”

“Fuck you! I _will_ discuss this! Don’t you realize how much you hurt me?!” Hiccup’s voice rose until he was yelling.

“Enough of this nonsense. We’ve been-!”

“NONSENSE?!!” Hiccup roared. “I AM IN LOVE WITH JACK FROST, AND IF I CAN’T BRING A GUY HOME FOR CHRISTMAS I WILL NOT COME AT ALL.” His hand was shaking. He clutched the phone so hard he was afraid it might break. “FUCK! YOU!”

He hung up, and it took all his self control not to throw the way too expensive phone to bits against the wall.

“AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!!!” He yelled at the top of his lungs. “FUUUUUUUCK!”

He gasped for breath, clutching his chest. What a clusterfuck. Why had he even said that about Jack? Bringing him home was just an idiotic fantasy and he felt stupid for saying it out loud. He’d meant it though, which made it hurt all the more. That’s all it would ever be. A fantasy.

A sob escaped him. He didn’t even try to keep it in. It was no use.

Another sob soon followed, and he sat down where he stood. Tears sprang free from his eyes as he covered his face with his hands, stifling his cries. He just wanted to be loved, was that too much to ask for?

Suddenly, there was a knock on his door.

He looked up with a tear-streaked face. He wiped at his snotty nose - god he was a messy crier - and debated whether he should see who it was. He hadn’t made up his mind when his phone vibrated.

Hiccup got up. His knees felt as if they were made of overcooked noodles. He made his way to the door and looked through the peeping-hole. He saw a very worried looking Jack.

“Come on, Hic,” the said whispered to the door. “Open up. It’s just me.”

Hiccup sighed and undid the lock, opening the door enough for Jack to come inside. He rubbed at his eyes in a lame attempt to somehow not seem like he’d been bawling just a second ago. Even before the door was fully closed, Jack wrapped his arms around Hiccup, hugging him tight. After a brief moment of hesitation, Hiccup returned the hug. He buried his face in the crook of Jack’s neck, and the tears started all over again. He shook and sniffled as Jack held him tight, his blue hoodie absorbing all the tears. It smelled like Jack, and Hiccup realized how much he’d missed that.

“I’m sorry,” he choked out.

“Shhhh,” Jack hushed him. “I get it. It’s okay.”

They stood in Hiccup’s little hallway, the door still not completely closed, for what seemed like an eternity. It wasn’t the best position to hug in, but it was a much needed comfort. Jack ran a hand up and down Hiccup’s back, mumbling calm, soothing words. Hiccup just held on until he could calm down again.

Eventually, he pushed them a little apart. “Shit, we better close the door before…”

In a flash of black, Toothless shot out onto the hallway.

“…Toothless escapes. Shit.”

“Go sit down, I’ll go get him,” Jack said, smiling softly. Hiccup looked at his way-too-kind neighbor and nodded. The black demon knew Jack well enough; he’d probably listen. Hiccup went back inside, grabbed himself a glass of water, and blew his nose. He sat down on the couch, just as Jack came back inside with Toothless in his arms. The cat was put down and Jack awkwardly stood for a second before he just as awkwardly sat down besides Hiccup.

“So… I heard most of that…” he started.

Hiccup blushed dark red and rested his face in his hands. “Oh god.”

“And first of all, your dad is a dick. Bisexuality is a thing and you are perfect the way you are. So you are welcome to celebrate Christmas with my parents whenever.”

“I know bisexuality is real cause I-” Hiccup stopped himself from further sassing Jack. “Sorry. Thank you.”

“And secondly… Hiccup, you wanted to take me home for Christmas as your boyfriend? Did you just push me away the past weeks because you have feelings for me?”

Hiccup avoided all eye contact, instead focusing on a small stain in his rug. “Yes,” he said in a little voice. “I know we said ‘just sex’ but I couldn’t help it and when I realized it was too late and I’m so sorry I fucked everything up.”

“You daft dodo!”

“What?”

“You limp cucumber!”

“What?! What is it?”

Jack gave Hiccup a serious look. “I’ve been flirting with you for weeks trying to let you know I was getting feelings for you too, because you were flirting with me. But you never responded!”

“I was flirting with you?”

“That was unintentional?!”

“Yes!”

“Holy. Shit.”

Hiccup finally looked up to find Jack staring at him, eyes wide and mouth gaping like a fish on dry land.

“You are, by far, the worst case of oblivious flirtyness that I have ever seen,” Jack mumbled with a little voice. “I swear to god, you were flirting with me so hard.”

“I honestly did not know,” Hiccup answered, just as surprised as Jack.

“How can you not know?! It was- I mean- UGH!” Jack threw his hands up in defeat. “Whatever! But you do like me back then?!”

Hiccup’s stomach performed a full Cirque du Soleil acrobatics  performance with a troupe of 12 acrobats. “YES! God, yes!”

Jack grinned from ear to ear, and he was upon Hiccup in a matter of seconds, pushing him over onto his back and pressing their lips together. When he broke apart, he was still smiling. “I love you, Henry Haddock.”

Hiccup giggled. “I love you too, Jack Frost.”

Jack swatted his arm. “And don’t you ever act that stupid again, you hear me?”

“I solemnly swear,” Hiccup said. But then his face turned dark. “Wait… but I saw you hooking up with someone else. What was the deal with that?”

Jack pushed himself up and frowned. “You saw him? Well… that was stupid on my part. But nothing happened!” Jack quickly added when he saw Hiccup’s frown deepen. “Your actions fucked me up too, you know,” he said softly. “I thought I’d screwed up, that I’d gone too far with my flirts…”

Jack was looking so small now… and Hiccup felt incredibly bad for being such an ass. He combed a hand through the soft white locks and pulled Jack close, pressing their foreheads together.

“I’m sorry…”

“I thought maybe some sex would help me get over it. It did not. It sucked. I wanted him to be you, and when I realized it was only that, I sent him away.”

Hiccup gave Jack another innocent kiss. “Not that I don’t want you to feel good… but I’m glad you’re still mine.”

“Oh, Hiccie, are you jealous?”

Hiccup pushed Jack, and the baker lowered himself again in response. He sank onto the couch, half on top of Hiccup and half besides him. It wasn’t particularly comfortable, but they had maximum contact and that’s all that mattered at this point.

“We’re celebrating Christmas with my family. You’ll love them, and they’ll love you. It’ll be great.”

Hiccup beamed. “Thank you.”

“Anything for my favorite freckle-face.”

 

**Author's Note:**

> Did a flash-like format again here, with time and date for each scene. Also images for the digital exchanges to make them stand out. Do let me know what you guys think of that! I'm also very keen to hear if the pacing worked out well :)


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